Minister: 65% of bomb shelters audited in Kyiv technically suitable for use

Strategic Industries Minister Oleksandr Kamyshin reported on June 7 that 65% of recently-surveyed bomb shelters in Kyiv are technically suitable for use and that the results of the audit are discouraging.

The audit was prompted after two women and a nine-year-old child were killed by missile debris on June 1 because they couldn't access the bomb shelter at a nearby clinic.

The 62-year-old night guard of the clinic was arrested over the incident. No other punitive measures have been taken against people for the state of Kyiv's bomb shelters thus far.  

Kyiv was targeted by Russian attacks 17 times in May, including three times within 24 hours on May 30.

According to Kamyshin, 3,382 bomb shelters were inspected, which accounts for 73% of the total in Kyiv.

"The absolute majority of shelters remain inaccessible," Kamyshin said, adding that, "the results of the audit are currently discouraging."

While 65% of the inspected bomb shelters technically meet the criteria of being suitable for civilian use, there are some structural issues with many of them. Thirty five percent of the bomb shelters surveyed during the audit were deemed unusable.

Following the scandal, Kyiv city officials set up a feedback system for local residents to submit complaints about the state of neighborhood bomb shelters. Mayor Vitalii Klitschko reported on June 3 that the system received nearly 1,000 complaints on the first day.

Clinic guard arrested over locked bomb shelter that led to civilian deaths in Kyiv

In an unexpected turn that left many commentators dissatisfied, the June 3 arrest hearing appeared to put the majority of responsibility for the tragedy on the clinic’s elderly night guard.

The Kyiv IndependentDaria Shulzhenko